Magic
Magic can be described as the use of one’s mind, body, and spirit in cooperation with their intent to create a desired effect, or in other words the manifestation of a desired event in the world around the caster. In this definition all things on this site can be placed under the banner of magic, however this page and its subsidiaries will be focusing more on traditional and spiritual magical arts such as spells, rituals and ceremonies, which can be described as an "indirect form" compared to psionics which focuses more on "direct form". Disclaimer: this page and others use examples of wiccan magic, it is not required for you to change your beliefs to practice magic, or anything noted to be wiccan, it is simply the knowledge forte of the author. Direct and Indirect forms Direct and Indirect forms are terms invented to describe the difference in forms of magic that cause a manifested effect The description of Direct and Indirect forms is simple. Direct A Direct form is a magical or psionic art that causes a direct and instantaneous for example; pyrokinesis is used to put out a candle flame. direct form abilities generally are quite hard to perform in comparison as they require the manipulation of matter in many cases however there are exceptions. Indirect an Indirect form is a magical or psionic art that is used to manifest an object or event as stated indirectly, for example; a spell is cast to gain an object of desire, this object is then found at some point in the near future. indirect forms that I've found easier to perform and at times done simply by wishing unintentionally by the person, more commonly than a direct form would be done unintentionally this page as described above will be focusing on the latter, however direct forms in Magic will be passed over also. Black and White magic Magic at many points is classified by this colour system, there are many other colours related to magical arts however these along with grey are separated due to their nature. Contrary to popular belief, black and white Magical arts are not schools or forms of magic but moral standings on various practised arts, for instance, if a Magical art is used to harm it would be classed as black, though to another person with a different moral outlook it could be seen differently, grey Magic is a term used to refer to Magic which is morally ambiguous Colours in Magic Color can play a large part in many Magical rituals and ceremonies. In some magical practices the colours can refer to a type of magic in itself, for instance red can refer to love magic, while green nature based magic, a Wiccan example will be used in this case. Colors for specific Magical goals (wiccan example) Yellow: yellow is described to be very fitting for magical arts such as divination. Purple: purple is described to be good for spiritual arts and for those who wish to deepen their spiritual awareness Blue: blue is described to be good for healers and those wishing to work upon psychic awareness, it is also used for attuning to the wiccan goddess in her oceanic aspect. Green: green is described to be good for those who work with herbs and nature, as well as magical ecologists and those who work with the natural world. Brown: brown is described to be good for those who wish to attune with animals or cast spells for them. White: white is good for the representation of pure spirituality and purification rituals, it is also suggested for meditation and cleansing rituals. In wicca it is worn on full moon celebrations to attune with the goddess. Red and Orange: red and orange are described to be good for protective rites rituals and spells, in Wicca it is worn on Sabbaths and to attune to the god in his fiery element. Black: within wicca contrary to popular belief once again, black is not in fact evil, it is the absence of colour, and thus, represents the night and sky, it is not so much good for a specific form of magic, however it represents the expanses of outer space which in many cases can represent divine power and energy, as well as infinity and possibility Past this, colors in themselves can represent emotional mental and physical states that the caster may be in. It is generally up to the caster themselves to work out their own individual colors in most cases. Spells and Rituals Spells and rituals make up the main parts of magic and many of the magical arts, to put into simple terms, a ritual is an action or series of actions done routinely or in the same way to either show respects or gain something, this can be a prayer before eating lunch, to a protective ritual, to simply brushing your teeth before bed. a spell on the other hand is an action to cause an effect through magical means, and thus is a specific type of ritual. A spell or ritual can be learned or developed independently, and can be used to do many things in direct and indirect magical arts, a spell or ritual can be as simple as the way one gathers and releases energy to cause the desired effect, or highly complex to gather as much immersion as possible to cause a potentially very powerful magical effect. All magical arts will generally feature some form of ritual even if not recognized as such. Magic and Magical energies At least in the Wiccan magical arts, there are generally considered to be three forms of energy that have the potential to be used in Magic, these are defined as "personal power" "earth power" and "divine power" personal power is described to come from the self and can be thought of as chi, earth power is the amalgamation of all earth's natural energies and can be thought of as mana, divine power comes from the universal energy flow that many perceive to exist and can be thought of as aura, what energies you perceive to exist is up to you, they can all be used to achieve goals and perform magical arts. Now looking at magic specifically, in its indirect form, there are many forms of magic, originating from all over the world, and ranging in use from healing to protection, curses, charms and even summoning spells, exorcisms, and other rituals of varying use and design, potions and ointments are also a factor in its development, various forms of magic are for instance: Divination: is the ability to gain insight into questions as well as future events, it can also include finding out about information of an object, or communing with the dead, a form of divination is -mancy, such as pyromancy, hydromancy or necromancy, which all use their respective subject to divine for information, Summoning: summoning is the ability to manifest various spiritual beings through rituals of varying complexity, summoning has been practised all over the world and is used for varying reasons from spiritual help in a spell or ritual or for personal gain or even revenge, Manifestation: this can refer to both direct and indirect magic and is simply defined as the use of the magical arts to manifest an object event or wish of the caster, it is the basic form of the magical arts in all forms. Elemental Magic: elemental magic refers to the use of elemental energies within a ritual or spell to bolster the casters own personal energy, it can also be used to develop a certain attribute within the spell itself Protection Magic: protection magic is a form of magic that is designed to protect the caster from harm, generally this is done through the casters intent and energies interfering on a small-scale level with the perception of those who may want to cause them harm, however many stronger spells do exist. This is just a small description of the many potential uses of the Magical arts, there are many many more uses for them and many more rituals and spells that can be used. See Also *Chaos Magic *Gnosis *Pendulums *Reiki *Rituals *Servitors *Seiðr *Sigil *Spells Category:Magic Category:All Abilities